The early Methodists were not just known for what they believed; they were known and admired for how they behaved. Who are the people called Methodists? In this Rose’s Ramblings, I will focus on our relationships with others.
- We are people who . . . are confident enough in our relationship with Jesus Christ that we are not threatened by those whose beliefs are different than ours. So, we may “think and let think.” John Wesley makes the following distinction between doctrine and opinion as he reflects upon George Whitfield’s life and ministry. “Let us keep close to the grand scriptural doctrines which he everywhere delivered. There are many doctrines of a less essential nature, with regard to which even the sincere children of God (such is the present weakness of human understanding) are and have been divided for many ages. In these we may think and let think; we may ‘agree to disagree.’ But, meantime, let us hold fast the essentials of ‘the faith which was once delivered unto the saints,’ and which this champion of God so strongly insisted on, at all times, and in all places!” Wesley reminded the Methodists that, while there is no compromise regarding the essentials of our faith, division stemming from “doctrines of a less essential nature” has no constructive place within the Church. There have been too many people who have left the Church or have been turned off by the Church because of disagreements over matters that do not have an eternal consequence. When people within the Church bicker over matters that are not pertinent to salvation, we place in jeopardy people’s souls as they leave in frustration because of our pettiness.
- We are people who . . . refuse to compromise on the essentials of our faith that has been delivered to us by the saints. For John Wesley, “the essentials of ‘the faith which was once delivered unto the saints’” cannot be compromised or changed. For Wesley, the essentials of our faith are as follows:
1. Original Sin
2. The Deity of Christ
3. The Atonement
4. Justification by Faith Alone
5. The Work of the Holy Spirit
6. The Trinity
Disagreements over the “doctrines of a less essential nature” that lead to division jeopardize people’s souls because people get tired of the bickering and just leave or, as they witness the bickering from the outside, they never come. But to compromise “the essentials of ‘the faith which was once delivered unto the saints’” in an attempt to appease the desires of people also jeopardizes people’s souls. We cannot allow the latest cultural fad to trump the revealed Word of God, because in so doing, we erode the very foundation of the Gospel. What has been revealed to us as pertinent to salvation cannot be compromised.
- We are people who . . . do not let differences of opinions cause distance in relationships. People may disagree with us, but if there is a love for Jesus Christ in their heart, we must give them our hand. Wesley’s great concern was for unity in witness. “I ask not, therefore, of him with whom I would unite in love, Are you of my church, of my congregation? Do you receive the same form of church government, and allow the same church officers, with me? Do you join in the same form of prayer wherein I worship God? I inquire not, Do you receive the supper of the Lord in the same posture and manner that I do? nor whether, in the administration of baptism, you agree with me in admitting sureties [godparents] for the baptized; in the manner of administering it; or the age of those to whom it should be administered. Nay, I ask not of you (as clear as I am in my own mind), whether you allow baptism and the Lord’s Supper at all. Let all these things stand by: we will talk of them, if need be, at a more convenient season; my only question is this, ‘Is thine heart right, as my heart is with thy heart?’” We cannot allow our structure to hinder our mission. We cannot allow our personal preferences to erect barriers in our relationships. When we worship the way we do things instead of the One Who created us, we lose effectiveness in our witness.
- We are people who . . . do not insist that everyone must come to Jesus Christ in the same way that we did, nor do we insist that everyone must worship God in the same manner as we do. “The Methodists alone do not insist on your holding this or that opinion; but they think and let think. Neither do they impose any particular mode of worship; but you may continue to worship in your former manner, be what it may. Now, I do not know any religious society, either ancient or modern, wherein such liberty of conscience is now allowed, or has been allowed, since the age of the Apostles. Here is our glorying; and a glorying peculiar to us. What society shares it with us?” We desire that everyone knows Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. We want people to become like Christ, not like us. This is who we are called to be and this is who, with God’s help, we are becoming in our relationships with all people.
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